Day 362
by luxluminaire
Summary: It's been 362 days since Roxas joined the Organization, and seven days since he left. Axel's thoughts before encountering Roxas in the digital Twilight Town. Old fic from September 2010


The clock tower in Twilight Town looks the same, feels the same, but Axel knows that this resemblance is all an illusion. A damn good one, he has to admit—if he didn't know better, he probably would never suspect that this wasn't the real Twilight Town. Except it _isn't_. It is only a data version, a computerized simulation where, according to Xemnas, Roxas had been brought following his capture after he had left the Organization. It is where, according to the plans, Axel is supposed to _deal with_ Roxas's status as a traitor to the Organization.

The orders still sting. So what if Roxas no longer seems to trust him, ever since he found out that Axel had been withholding information about—and here Axel's memory begins to draw a blank, only coming up with a fuzzy image of a girl wearing an Organization cloak who resembles Naminé. All right, so maybe not telling Roxas everything was kind of a jerk move. But Axel is far too used to dealing in deception. It's what caused him to play double-agent and weed out the traitors at Castle Oblivion. It's what caused him and Saïx to want to take the Organization for themselves, before their individual motives changed. And now, apparently, it's what Xemnas thinks will cause him to unhesitatingly deal with Roxas's desertion.

But Roxas is different. Axel has spent too many years as a Nobody, hearing over and over again that Nobodies can only pretend to have emotions. When he's with Roxas, though, he can almost believe that he _does_ have emotions. When he's with Roxas, Axel almost feels like a complete being once more, one with a heart that all the members of the Organization so desperately seek. All those hours spent on the clock tower, eating sea-salt ice cream together, has made Axel remember again how it feels to care about somebody. And Axel isn't just going to allow that to be taken away from him.

So Axel sits on top of the clock tower in this not-Twilight Town, eating his ice cream alone and wondering what the hell he is going to do. He wants to see Roxas again. That's undeniable. Ever since Roxas walked straight past him in the Dark City, with the heartbreaking (well, metaphorically) claim that no one would miss him when he was gone, Axel has wanted to tell him that he was sorry for everything. That he hopes that maybe they could put all of that behind them, and go back to how things used to be. Maybe he can convince Roxas to come back without using violence. That way Xemnas can still have his precious Keyblade wielder, and Axel can still have Roxas and the illusions of humanity that he gives him. It's a win-win situation, really.

Axel looks out over the town. His eyes rest upon the sandlot, where some kind of event seems to be taking place. A huge crowd of people surrounds what looks like a boxing ring, and inside the ring two boys seem to be beating the crap out of each other using large blue bats. Axel is about to chuckle at the ridiculousness of this scene, but the emotionless laugh dies away when he recognizes one of the bat-wielding figures.

It's Roxas.

But not quite the Roxas that he is used to seeing. Sure, his general appearance is the same, but he is no longer dressed in the standard Organization coat. He's now wearing more casual clothing, in shades of black and white and beige that trigger within Axel a strange, long-forgotten memory of his youth. And, of course, he's not wielding the Keyblade, and although his technique with the bat is similar, it now looks strangely comical in comparison. What's more, Roxas seems to be _enjoying_ himself—there's none of the aggressive ruthlessness that Axel is used to seeing from him while fighting the Heartless. Right now, Roxas just looks like a normal kid having a playful brawl with one of his friends. It seems like he's assimilated himself into this digital world quite nicely.

But that's the thing: this _isn't_ Roxas's world. This isn't his home; his home is back at the Castle, with Axel, with the rest of the Organization. And maybe Roxas wouldn't be able to find the answers to who he was there... but does he really think that he'll be able to find out his true identity elsewhere? No, he's better off staying with the Organization, continuing to collect hearts at Xemnas's demand so that the Organization can become whole beings once more. And as much as Roxas makes Axel feel like he has a heart, he knows it's not the real thing. He _wants_ the real thing.

Thus, finishing the last few bites of his ice cream, Axel makes a decision. He stands up from where he has been sitting on the edge of the clock tower, pulls the hood of his coat over his head, and walks down from the tower to go to the sandlot.

But when he gets there, everything is wrong. The crowd has frozen, as if their data has been corrupted by some kind of bug in the system. Roxas's bat has been replaced with his Keyblade, and he is now surrounded by Dusks. For a moment Roxas almost looks like his old self again, mercilessly bringing down his Keyblade to destroy the Dusks that were once only practice fodder for him. After Roxas strikes down the last Dusk, Axel decides to make his presence known by applauding him.

"Roxas. All right," he says in a congratulatory drawl. "Fight, fight fight."

Roxas jumps a little in surprise, but there is no recognition in his eyes. Axel's heart (well, if he had one) sinks slightly. Of _course_ something like this would happen, this new normal-teenager Roxas forgetting what really mattered.

"You really don't remember me?" Axel continues. "It's me. You know, Axel." He takes off his hood, but there is still no recognition on Roxas's part.

"Axel?" Roxas repeats hesitantly after a moment. It's not a repetition of realizing _oh, yeah, it's you_. He still remains as blank as ever, utterly confused by the presence of this strange man who seems to know him.

Well, fine. If that is how it is going to be, then maybe Axel _is_ going to have to use force. He's not going to let Roxas's sudden amnesia stop him from making things go back to how they used to be. He is going to do whatever it takes to have Roxas in his life again, even if he does have to fight him.

He gives a long sigh, and summons his chakrams.


End file.
